Cherry Cheeks
by Ryoumafan
Summary: When Ash was young, his godfather gave him a young Mewtwo. Follow Ash and Paul on Ash's way to become a Master. Smart/powerful/aura/sexy Ash.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's notes**: Set as an AU and a cross between manga and anime canon. Co-written with ThomasLight.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Pokémon.

...

_**Cherry Cheeks**_

_**Prologue: Mewtwo's Creation**_

Giovanni had been contemplating this decision for quite a while. He thought — no, _knew_ — Ash was ready to take care of this Pokémon... once it hatched, of course. Taking care of the egg wasn't the problem; the problem was when it hatched.

Now, some would find it over the top in caring for an egg. However, for Giovanni, it had been years of work and dedication for the egg to come to life. Also added into the equation was years of finding the elusive and rare legendary Pokémon that disappeared for years on end.

Now that had changed. He could still remember how the process of it went.

He wasn't naïve in the science area. In fact, he studied biology and chemistry in order to understand the process of life, how many organisms existed and how molecules were connected together. He chose the cloning route.

The cloning process required taking a strand of DNA of a living organism, whether it was hair, blood, toenails, etc.; then from that small item, replicating the creature to its exact looks and near behaviour of it, or bringing it into the world as a baby. However, he saw a flaw in the plan: nothing lasted.

A number of failed experiments came as Mew turned out to be a disaster. As it reached a certain point in replication a number of times, it failed and some failed attempts caused a number of wrong appearances to 'aborted' deaths. The failures frustrated him, as the scientist found this was a complication.

Sure, they could make another Pidgey or a Caterpie and that was when he realized it: that Mew was far more complicated in terms of creating the creature. It can transform into any Pokémon and, being psychic, had a high intelligence level. He began at square one again.

The strand of hair that was found earlier on didn't work out, so finding an alternative was crucial. Luck would grace him, when he was hiking on the mountains near Mt. Silver. He was in sheer disbelief at finding a Mew. It was their mating season; he was with another Pokémon and he seemed almost finished.

Giovanni took out a small test tube and waited until he was finished. Once done, the Mew left the other creature to rest as Mew disappeared. Giovanni made a run for it and, using a small tool, he collected a semen sample of the creature in question. The ex-Rocket then closed it and called out his Pidgeot to fly him as fast as possible to his tent. He reached his tent and placed the sample in a cryo capsule, freezing it for further use. He smiled in glee; he now had a sample. The hard part was about to begin; finding a creature compatible with it to begin the experiment.

An egg was needed and it had to match the Pokémon in question. He wondered about this, since Mew could change into any Pokémon, thanks in part to its amazing abilities. He thought about this for sometime, along with the other scientists. He wanted to make this work and that was when it clicked with him.

Ditto.

Ditto could transform into anything and they seemed to give the eggs that were needed by the same species. It would a difficult process, however, with a legendary Pokémon to be reproduced. An attempt with an Articuno was made by an Elite trainer several years back and failed, due to the lack of proper equipment to recreate the Pokémon itself.

He was going to have to obtain one and begin to get its egg cell from it. He was able to extract what he needed from it and began the process. He placed it into an isolated tube filled with the same gel that was found inside of a Pokémon mother and waited. He crossed his finger and hoped it worked.

After a number of weeks, the other scientists came to him and gave him the great news. An egg had formed and showed signs of life, as well as a large level of Beta and Alpha waves. This indicated a high level of psychic power that was transmitting out of its brain.

Giovanni was then going to give this to his godson as his official starter. Ash, Red Ketchum's son, showed similar signs to the egg and as they both grew older together, both human and Pokémon would be able to control their powers. They would also be able to have a better relationship than any person.

...

A lone man stood on the outskirts of Pallet Town. This man wore a deep black suit and hat and had a suitcase to his side. His name was Giovanni Walker. Giovanni walked down to the dirt road out of the small town until he reached a small white house. He sighed, before walking up to the house and ringing the doorbell.

"Coming," called a feminine voice. The door opened to reveal a young woman with long brown hair and brown eyes. "Can I help you?"

Giovanni removed his hat and smiled. "Hello Delia. Is Ash here?"

Delia gasped. "Giovanni! What are you-?!"

"Mum?" asked a small voice. From behind the woman was a small boy about seven-years-old with spiky black hair and bright brown eyes. The boy's eyes widened as he saw Giovanni and smiled. "Mr. Walker! You came to visit!"

Giovanni reassured the woman that he was not intending to harm Ash. "It's quite alright, Delia. I understand your concern, but I'm not here to cause trouble today. I wanted to give Red my well wishes and Ash his starter Pokémon." He took out an incubator from his backpack and showed Delia and a curious Ash what was inside.

"Now, do you remember what I told you about that project?" Giovanni asked. Delia's confused expression prompted him to continue. "I had set up a special program to research on the usefulness of cloning. As I said, we had three subjects – a Bulbasaur, a Charmander, and a Squirtle. However, there were two other subjects. Do you remember Dr. Fuji?"

Delia nodded in confirmation.

"Yes. Per his request, we also tried to create a clone of his deceased daughter, Amber." Delia gasped at the statement. "The last subject was… a clone of Mew. Inside this incubator is Mewtwo."

Delia stared in complete shock. Within the incubator was supposedly the clone of the legendary Mew. How could she respond to this?

"What do you have planned for the little guy?" Delia questioned, after taking a moment to recover.

"Like I said, I'm giving him to Ash," Giovanni answered. Delia just looked back in surprise. "Who are you kidding, Delia? Ash is a trainer. It was in Red's blood, so it's bound to be in Ash's blood. The minute he'll be able to, he'll run out to get his first Pokémon."

"Really?!" Ash exclaimed.

Giovanni nodded. "You see, Mewtwo is very young. Too young to battle since he hasn't been born yet. So I was thinking that you could take care of him. Then when you're old enough, you can take Mewtwo as your first Pokémon."

"Ash," Delia spoke up. "Why don't you show Mewtwo your room?"

"Great idea!" Ash replied happily. He carefully grabbed the incubator and took off.

Giovanni watched with a warm smile as he watched his godson run up the stairs with Mewtwo's egg. He knew he made the right choice to bring Mewtwo home and give him to Ash. There was no doubt in his mind the two would become great friends and a powerful team.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N**: Here's chapter 1. Hope everyone enjoys!

...

**Chapter 1: A Blossoming Relationship**

_Ten years later..._

Ash was sitting in the waiting room inside of Professor Oak's lab. He seemed nervous and excited at the same time about receiving his first starter. He has been waiting for sometime as he tucked his hair back and began to ponder about how life had changed for him.

Ever since the Pokémon hatched that was given to him as a gift, his life wasn't the same anymore. He learned that the Pokémon was a Mewtwo; the first of its own kind to exist. Giovanni explained that Mewtwo was a genetic Pokémon that has strong untapped powers. In order to help the Pokémon out, they both had to be well bonded with one another and be able to understand each other.

The Pokémon itself, when it hatched, was at least two feet tall with a long tail, three fingers, a long tube that connected the back of his head to his back and his eyes were purple when he opened them. He learned it was a 'he' when he spoke in telepathy. His mum helped out by buying a meditation book that allowed them to share minds and be able to increase their psychic strength. It wasn't easy for Ash, considering how hyper he was, until Mewtwo managed to calm him down.

It did helped greatly as Ash was more collected in his thoughts, and he was able to have a better memory for things he read. He also was able to increase his knowledge, due to the exposure of the wavelengths that the psychic Pokémon produced. Over the ten years, his Pokémon grew in length and size and Ash was in awe how stronger he was becoming.

Those ten years were the best for him and he was ready. Even with his psychic training, he was still a nervous teen. Suddenly, the door opened and a man with a lab coat and brown hair that was greying looked at Ash and smiled.

"Hello, Ash. My name is Professor Oak." The young teen stood up and shook his hand. "Follow me." He did so. Inside of the room was another young teen with dark brown hair, wearing a purple shirt and black pants.

"Hey Gary!" He greeted.

"Hey Ash," he answered.

Then Oak cleared his throat and began his speech. "Welcome new trainers, as your journey begins here. You will receive your starter as it is a standard mandatory to those that want to pursue in Pokémon training. Now you will also receive a Pokédex and five Poké Balls in order to catch your first five Pokémon. If you need more, buy them in various Pokémon shops. As you journey, you will also battle trainers, from beginners to experienced ones. You must be ready to fight at all cost if it comes. You will be rewarded with money for each battles in order for you to buy supplies and such."

"Now, Ash, you will choose first."

Ash nodded as he looked at the three Poké Balls available. Each having a sticker of the symbol of the type that existed. The young teen found the one he wanted and grabbed the Poké Ball with a flame symbol. He threw the ball. "Go, Charmander!"

A small orange lizard with blue eyes and flaming tail looked around and found the trainer. "Char!" The Pokémon went over and hugged Ash. He smiled and picked it up. Oak then said: "Charmander. Interesting choice, and it is a female Ash."

He smiled and cuddled it. "You're a cute one, right?" She nodded and giggled.

"Well, it looks like I am next." Gary went over and took the Poké Ball with a cascade water symbol. "Go, Squirtle!"

A small turtle with blue skin, looked around. The Pokémon saw the trainer and went for a hug. He did so and it giggled. "Squirtle. Nice choice and it is a male."

"You will be awesome, right?"

"Squirtle!"

Suddenly the door opened and another trainer was panting. A young girl wearing a white hat with brown hair, blue blouse and red shorts was panting. "Sorry, I'm late Professor. The alarm…"

"It's okay, there is one more Pokémon left."

She looked over and decided to check it out. She took it out and out came a teal skinned lizard creature with a plant bud in its back. The Pokémon looked around and found its trainer, smiling "Oh it's so cute! A Bulbasaur!" She went over and hugged it, as the Pokémon was happy at being loved. "Bulbasaur, balanced and strong. A male one also."

As they still held their Pokémon on their side, they each received their Pokédex and the Poké Balls. Then he said: "I wish you guys the best and hope that things work out. Contact me when you three reach to Viridian City."

Then they left.

...

_Two hours later, Route 1..._

Ash was walking through Route 1, already packed and travelling on the road. Thus far things are going smooth, until he saw a young man training an odd looking Pokémon. The person in question was a young man with short purple hair, taller than him, and had an intense look on his eyes. The Pokémon in question was an orange monkey, with a flaming tail as well, who was training hard.

"Alright, good work. Now keep practicing that Scratch attack on that rock!" The monkey nodded as he scratched hard once more.

Ash was curious and asked: "Hello?"

The young man turned around and realized another trainer was present. He seemed polite. "Oh, hello."

"Is the Pokémon trying to learn Metal Claw?"

The young man was surprised about how he knew about the training method, but he nodded with a soft smile. "That's correct. It is taking him some time, but he is getting there. My name is Paul." He took out his hand to shake it.

"Ash. Ash Ketchum."

They shook hands as Paul asked: "Want to battle?"

"Sure, but let's make sure that he is rested."

"Oh right. Chimchar, break before battle!" The little monkey Pokémon stopped and rested on the grass. Ash took his Charmander out and went over to greet the Pokémon.

"So is this your first day of training?" Paul asked.

"Yep. I'm excited about this! Is this your first?" Ash questioned curiously.

For some reason, Paul looked at Ash's brown eyes and felt his heartbeat quicken a little, but then was able to focus. "Yes. I am from Sinnoh, though, from a city called Veilstone City. I wanted to start here to see if I could catch any unique Pokémon."

Ash was amazed that he met another trainer from a different region. He did look nice and cute… _Wait, did I just say cute?_ He couldn't believe he just thought that.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts and they began to chat about their lives. How Paul's brother almost won the Battle Frontier. He at first was angry about it, until he saw the battle himself on how he lost. He realized the last opponent was too tough. He didn't hold any resentment to his brother, as he promised him that he would do his best. The Sinnoh trainer learned from Ash that he was from Pallet Town not too far from Route 1 and lived with his mother.

Ten minutes passed as Paul said: "Ready to battle?"

"You betcha!"

They both backed off at least twenty feet as both Pokémon were in their positions to battle.

"Let's see what you got. Chimchar, Scratch Attack!"

The Pokémon began to run right at his opponent and ready to knock her off balance. "Counter it with your own Scratch attack!"

Both Pokémon went and collided their attacks. The attack caused a friction that both of them flew back and landed on their backs. They both got up quickly and were ready for more.

"Chimchar, Ember attack!" He then released a small flame attack.

"Charmander, Smokescreen to block it!"

Charmander released a brown smog that the flame attack ignited. It made a small explosion as both Pokémon were hit by it. Some scratches were present, but they were ready for more.

"Impressive, but not enough. Dig!" Paul commanded. The monkey Pokémon burrowed underground.

Ash was able to pin-point the Pokémon in question, as Ash commanded: "Charmander, wait until I say roll." She nodded and waited.

"Now Attack!"

Chimchar was climbing up fast, as Ash said: "Now, roll right and another Ember attack!"

She rolled out of the way and was able to release the attack. It was a direct hit, but she was hit by a fast rock that pelted her head. They both fell on the ground and were barely getting up.

"Scratch Attack!" They both shouted.

Both Pokémon went for the last attack as they ran. They ran and both connected the attacks and both flew right at their perspective trainers. They landed hard on the side of their trainers with swirls on their eyes. Both went to their Pokémon and began to check up on them.

"Are you okay, Charmander?" Ash inquired worriedly. The lizard Pokémon opened her eyes and nodded.

"Chimchar, you okay?" Paul asked. The monkey Pokémon nodded and fainted once more. He sighed and said: "You did well. Return."

"Take a good rest, buddy." They both returned their Pokémon and realized their first battle was a draw. That was unheard of.

Ash walked over to Paul and offered a hand. "Well done," the raven-haired teen congratulated, genuinely smiling at his new friend.

Paul smiled back and accepted the offered hand, shaking it firmly. "Thank you."

Ash then asked Paul if he would like to join him on his journey throughout Kanto and the other regions to become a Pokémon Master.

Paul thought about it for a moment and quickly agreed, explaining it was his destiny to become stronger as well, adding an afterthought that they might meet as rivals in the Indigo League.

Ash laughed and said that he would enjoy that battle if it came to pass as he knew they would both go all out, at which Paul strongly nodded.

After a moment, Paul asked if they were continuing to the next city.

"We sure are!" Ash exclaimed, a grin sneaking onto his face. "Shall we go?" He asked teasingly.

Paul blinked at him in surprise and then felt his face redden, so he looked away in embarrassment. "... Y-Yes," he stammered. _Why did Ash do that?_ He wondered. _Does he know I like him? Does he feel the same way about me?_

"Paul? Paul!" Ash gently shook his companion's shoulder, bringing the other male back to reality. "Are you okay? You spaced out a bit."

Paul fidgeted, swallowed nervously and decided to get this out in the open once and for all. "Ash, do you like me?" The purple-haired seventeen-year-old questioned.

Realizing that Paul must have worked it out, Ash answered honestly. "Yes, I do like you, Paul. I think you're cute. I think I'm beginning to fall for you."

A weight had been taken off of his shoulders. Paul knew Ash was telling the truth. "I think I'm falling in love with you as well," the Sinnoh-born trainer replied.

That hadn't been too hard, they were both out in the open now. Thinking quickly, Ash did something he hoped Paul would understand. He hugged him and, for a moment, nothing happened.

Paul ended up hugging him back, but it was a ginger movement, as if he wasn't used to emotions like this. "Thanks, Paul," Ash murmured. "Now, let's be off." And with that, the two trainers separated, put the Poké Balls on their belts and started walking again.

As they travelled the last stretch of path to Viridian City, they talked more about their upbringing and their pasts. Needless to say, Paul got the shock of his life when he learned that Ash's godfather was the ex-Team Rocket leader, Giovanni Walker. Ash didn't feel like revealing his special trump card yet.


End file.
